Confirmation hearings set for Ketanji Brown Jackson as Supreme Court nominee meets with senators
By Betsy Klein, Phil Mattingly, Morgan Rimmer and Ted Barrett, CNN
Confirmation hearings for the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson will start on Monday, March 21, the Senate Judiciary Committee announced Wednesday.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin of Illinois said that Jackson will be formally introduced on March 21, there will be two days of questioning on Tuesday, March 22, and Wednesday, March 23 and additional witnesses will testify on Thursday, March 24.
The hearing announcement comes as Jackson is on Capitol Hill for a series of meetings with senators, the first steps in a historic nomination process as Democrats work quickly to confirm the first Black woman to the nation’s high court.
She began her day by meeting with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and is also slated to meet with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Leaving his meeting with Jackson, Schumer told reporters, “I said she was brilliant and beloved. I’d add a third B — belongs. She belongs on the court.”
He continued, “She reminds me in certain ways of the, of (Justice Stephen Breyer), who she clerked for, that she is so thoughtful and even-handed and tries to look at both sides.”
Asked about the timeline to confirm Jackson, Schumer reiterated that he wants this finished by April 8.
Schumer also expressed hope that she could gain some Republican support as she meets with more senators. “I am hopeful that a good number of Republicans will vote for her, given who she is, and when they meet her they will just be wowed, as I was,” he said. “She’s an amazing person.”
In the afternoon, Jackson will meet with Durbin and Chuck Grassley, the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee.
Jackson will be joined by White House counsel Dana Remus, legislative affairs director Louisa Terrell and deputy director Reema Dodin, spokesman Andrew Bates and former Alabama Democratic Sen. Doug Jones, who is serving in the role known as “Sherpa” guiding the nominee through the confirmation process.
President Joe Biden last week nominated Jackson, who currently sits on DC’s federal appellate court, to succeed Breyer, who is retiring.
While it’s common for Supreme Court nominees to meet with leadership of both parties and Judiciary Committee members, Biden has promised all senators that Jackson will conduct one-on-one interviews with any who wish to meet with her.
Democratic leadership is pushing to have Jackson’s confirmation ahead of the Senate’s April recess, with her officially sworn-in after Breyer’s retirement in early summer.
This story and headline have been updated with additional developments Wednesday.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2022 Cable News Network, Inc., a WarnerMedia Company. All rights reserved.
CNN’s Veronica Stracqualursi contributed to this report.
